


Thomas Highland

by DonnaClaireHolmes



Category: Alice Through the Looking Glass, Alice in Wonderland (Movies - Burton)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-06-01
Updated: 2016-07-19
Packaged: 2018-07-11 16:03:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,201
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7059643
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DonnaClaireHolmes/pseuds/DonnaClaireHolmes
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“Goodbyes are not forever. Goodbyes are not the end. They simply mean I will miss you, until we meet again.” ~unknown</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Wonder

She’s holding her dearest friends hand, staring straight into the looking glass. She turns back to him for just a moment. “Goodbye Hatter.” And she takes a step forward. “Goodbye Alice.” Back in London now, Alice has her mother, her ship, and her memories. It would seem that this was the end of her tale, a happy one, but it’s not quite over yet.

A month into their first endeavor, Alice has a terrible nightmare; She’s returned to Underland and is having tea with the Hatter, the Hare and the Dormouse once again. A flash of lightning and fire suddenly rains down upon them. The Jabberwocky is back in one whole piece and tears down the windmill behind them with a wave of his wing. Thackery and Malyumkin escape before he can strike again, but Alice and Tarrant stand strong. They hold hands and look fate in the eye as the Jabberwocky howls his fiery breath at them. Alice wakes up in her bed on The Wonder, safe, unburnt, and alone. She’s restless the entire day.

“Darling, what’s the matter? You’ve barely spoken a word all day, let alone eaten. Are you alright? Should we stop at a port?” It’s just like her mother to be worried about her wellbeing. “I’m fine. Just a nightmare.” Alice lied through her teeth. She wasn't alright. The last time she had a nightmare was when her father was still alive. Even that nightmare ended up being a flashback of her first trip to Underland, so what could an actual nightmare mean? Is this realy happening? Are her friends in danger?

It ended up not just being a nightmare, but several. Same idea, however each ended differently. One time, the tea was poisoned and the Hatter simply fell over in his seat, dead. Alice ran over to see him but in the process fell herself, and she woke up. Another time Stayne’s skeleton came back and beheaded them all. Every time she seemed to wake up just before she was killed. It was unnerving, so she turned to the only person who would believe her.

Alice was in her study on the ship, sitting on the window seat and staring out at the full moon. “You told me we would meet in the Garden of Memories, in the Palace of Dreams. You promised that’s where we’d meet again, not in the Dungeon of Nightmares. Hatter, please. What is any of this supposed to mean? Are you in trouble, or am I? Please, just help me understand.”

Another year past, and once a week Alice would suffer a nightmare worse than the one before. There were days when she wouldn’t come out of her study. Her mother and Mr Harcourt were so worried, but they had no idea what to do. Every port they would go to, they would try to convince Alice to get off the ship. They would see specialists and dream interpreters, convince them to come aboard the ship to talk to her, but her door would always be locked. "Go away! You can't come in!" "Alice, dear, you need help!" Helen was tired of bargaining with her daughter, so she decided to be straightforward. "Something's the matter with you and there are people who can help you!" "There is nothing the hatter with me!!" Alice shouted. She realized her mistake in words, and broke down into tears.

"Please," she whispered now, "please just leave me."

That's when she notices Absolem on the door handle.

 


	2. The Fantasy

“Twinkle twinkle little bat, where I wonder are you….” “HIGHLAND!” “Sir!” The young man was scrubbing the floor of the kitchen and muttering some nonsense of a song. “You’re needed on the deck. Something about stringing new sails.” His superior snarled as he walked away. Highland was the newest crewmember aboard the Wonder, but that wasn’t the only reason he seemed a little…..odd.

His job was simple: ship maintenance. Literally anything and everything that needed to be cleaned, fixed or repaired was his responsibility. But at night, when all the stars were out and everyone was asleep, Thomas would climb up to the crow’s nest and gaze out at the open water. It was at these moments he realized why the ship was called The Wonder. It brought such amazement that it could only leave people in awe. 

“Stupid girl.” Absolem, as usual, was not in the mood for Alice’s amazement at his appearance. “Oh, Absolem. Please just listen to me. I’ve been having these nightmares. I’m back in Underland with all my friends and something terrible happens and they all die. Is it a prophecy? Is everyone alright? Are they alive?” “You know, I can’t answer you if you don’t stop talking. Everyone in Underland is fine.” Alice sat back down on her window seat in awe. “Then what does this mean?” “I haven’t the faintest idea. Honestly, do you think I know everything?” “Yes, you’re Absolem!” “And you’re Alice. So figure it out!” And with that, Absolem disappeared into a puff of blue smoke. 

The next morning, Alice emerged from her office. After being blinded by the light, she immediately sought out her mother. If anyone would be able to help her figure things out, it’d be Helen. “Alright.” “So, you believe me?” Alice is astounded after telling her mother about her adventures in Underland. “Darling, we are on a ship in the middle of an ocean. There’s not much I won’t believe nowadays.” After about two hours of explaining her nightmares in horrifying detail, Alice took a deep breath. “So Absolem was here, and he just disappeared?” “Yes. Now I don’t know what else to do.” “I have an idea…” At the next port, Helen purchased a new fountain pen, two thick notebooks, and a large supply of ink.

“You think writing everything down will help?” “Absolutely. One book is to record the nightmares, and the other is to recount the tales you told me, so that maybe when these nightmares do wake you, you have something else to get your mind off of it.” Alice hugged her mother, and ran to her office to begin what would end up being three full days of writing. She liked rereading her first trip Underland the best. Calling it “Wonderland” and being mocked by Absolem. Painting Iracebeth’s white roses red. Having her first tea with Tarrant.

Tarrant. She missed her friend. His bright eyes, mismatched clothing, the certain way he walked. The way his voice got Scottish when he was angry. There had been no one in the whole of England, or the Earth for that matter, that could ever match the friendship she had with him. What would he be doing at this moment? Would he be making hats for Mirana, or having tea with his pals? Would he be thinking about her? Alice spent more time thinking about if Tarrant was thinking about her more that she’d like to admit, but it was a good question.

Alice awoke that morning without having a single nightmare for the first time in what seemed like ages. She ran from her room all around the deck to try and find Helen to tell her the good news. On her way down a set of stairs she tripped and fell into a young man who was tying a sail down to a railing. The two fell over, and after taking a second to compose himself, he spoke. “It’s you, isn’t it? I’d know you anywhere.” Alice looked up and the two spoke at the same time: “Captain!” “Tarrant?” 


	3. The Reality

“Thomas, ma’am.” “Tarrant.” “No, ma’am, my name’s Thomas.” “Thomas, okay.” Alice starts hopping backwards on what seems to be a sprained ankle. “Okay. Alright, well, Thomas, it was lovely to meet you, but” she starts to fall. He grabs her hand just in time. “Ma’am, if it’s all the same to you, I think I should help you to your office.” “If you don’t mind.”

He picks her up and carries her, which causes more than a few wandering eyes in their direction. He places her gently on her window bench and stands at attention, as if he’s waiting for instructions. “Thomas?” “Yes, ma’am?” “I don’t know about you, but I would feel more comfortable if you were a bit more relaxed.” Thomas shifted awkwardly. “Would you do me a favor?” “Of course, ma’am.” “First off, please stop calling me ma’am, or captain. Alice will do just fine.” “Yes, m… Alice.” She cringed at the sound of her name rolling off his tongue. It felt so familiar but so new at the same time. “Also, I need you to find my mother and ask her to come here. If she’s not in her study she’ll be in the kitchen.” The young man nodded and exited the room without another word, in fear of calling her “ma’am” or “captain”.

As soon as he left, she pulled out two blank sheets of paper and a pencil. She tried to sketch Tarrant as close to his likeness as possible, then she began to sketch Thomas. Her mind grew foggy due to the pain of her ankle. Alice had just cursed under her breath as Helen ran in with several rags and a bucket of ice. “What happened?!” She rushed over, dropped on her knees and began assessing her daughter’s injury. “It’s him, mom. It’s really him.” “Who?” “Tarrant!” “Tarrant, you mean from Underland?” “Yes! I haven’t the slightest clue how but the guy I had find you, it’s him!” “Alice, just breathe. You’ve had a bad fall,” “But I didn’t! He caught me!” “Alice, calm down! It cannot possibly be him, you told me yourself.” “I know what I said, but you also know how I feel about impossible things.”

Thomas was standing outside the door, attempting small talk with Mr Harcourt. “Highland.” “Yes, sir.” “It would be in the best interest of the captain if you keep your contact to a minimum. We wouldn’t want another incident like your father’s, would we?” “How do you…” “We like to have a good sense of who we’re hiring here, Highland.” “You don’t have to worry sir. The last thing I want is to end up like my father.” “Good. You’re dismissed, Highland.” Thomas nodded and went back to cleaning the deck. Mr Harcourt entered the room, where Alice had gone back to her drawing and Helen sat across from her desk, looking concerned.

“Highland shouldn’t be a bother to you anymore, Captain.” “What do you mean?” “His father is a criminal. Minor theft, but still, we wouldn’t want him sneaking around here, would we?” “Mr Harcourt,” Alice continued, “There is nothing I would want more than to be in his presence.” He began to protest, but she held up one finger, “I believe it’s time I told you a few things.” After several hours of trying to explain Underland, Mr Harcourt began to pace the room. “But I don’t understand. This was all a dream. It can’t possibly be reality!” Alice, who had finished her drawings and smiled as she looked at them side by side, “Oh Mr Harcourt,” She said with a smile, “Who’s to say which is which?”

Regaining strength in her ankle, Alice strolled the deck, determined to find Thomas. “Mr Highland!” “Ma’... Capt….sorry, Alice.” He seemed very reserved compared to when they first met. “What’s the matter, Thomas?” He never looked up as he spoke, and he shifted a mop in between his hands, “I’m truly, very sorry, but I think I need to resign. I am very grateful for your employment, but I intend on leaving at the next port.” “Nonsense!” She pulled out the drawings from her pocket, took a seat on a bench and motioned for him to sit with her. “This is you, correct?” She showed her drawing of him. “Yes ma’am, but I don’t see what…” “Please, just trust me. Now, do you know who this is?” She puts the picture of Tarrant next to the one of Thomas. The young man stares in confusion for a while. “Thomas, this is Tarrant.”

He jolts up and scurries back until he’s leaning against the ship’s railing. “I…. I don’t understand. That’s me…. But so is that!” He looked at her in fear and confusion. She ran over to him and held his hand. “Thomas, it’s ok! Please, just let me explain.” Alice sat back on the bench and Thomas willingly followed her. “Tarrant lives in a place called Underland, where animals talk and time is an actual being. I’ve been there three times, and even saved the people from the Jabberwocky…. It was this terrible dragon that I slayed, but that’s not the point. The point is that I… I miss my friend, very much.”

Thomas sat in silence for a moment, but spoke with a slight change in his voice, “You’re mad, aren’t you?” Alice looked down in disappointment, a tear forming in her eye. “Absolutely bonkers. But I’ll tell you a secret.” She looked up with just enough time to watch his eyes turn from dark brown to the electric green she’d become so familiar with. Tarrant smirked, “All the best ones are.”


End file.
